This invention relates generally to a locking knife and sheath combination which is readily attachable to a garment, belt, boot, or the like.
The typical knife includes a metal blade with a handle made from plastic, wood, metal, laminate, or the like, being fixed to the blade in some manner. The handle portion can be molded directly onto a shank, or tang, portion extending from the blade or can be attached to such tang portion by rivets, screws, or some other suitable fasteners. In the manufacturing context, the attachment of a handle to the knife usually requires additional manufacturing steps, which accordingly increases the complexity of manufacture and labor costs in general.
All-metal knives, where the blade and handle are both provided on a unitary piece of metal, have been produced. Because of the relative ease of manufacture, they can be produced quite economically, in that no separate handle assembly is required. Also, since the separate handle, which could break, become loose, or fall off, is not required, such all-metal knives tend to have advantage in toughness and durability over conventional knives where the knife and handle are not formed integrally from one piece of metal.
However, such one-piece knives have, in the past, had several significant disadvantages. From a subjective standpoint, one-piece all-metal knives are sometimes viewed as being of less quality and value as compared to conventional knives. Perhaps the most significant disadvantage was that the metal handle did not provide a comfortable grip for using the knife. An especially economical method of producing one-piece knives involves stamping or forming them from sheet or bar metal stock. In so doing, however, the handle portion of the knife is of the same general thickness as is the blade portion. This can result in the knife handle being of a relatively thin profile, which, without more, can be uncomfortable to use. The knives offer no cushioning for the handle portion since the handle is rigid and integral with the blade. On the other hand, the relatively thin thickness of the handle provides for a low- profile knife with a reduced bulk, as compared to a conventional knife having an enlarged handle fixed to the blade.
Another feature of conventional knives is that the handle is designed for ambidextrous use, i.e., the knife must be usable by either left or right-handed individuals. Also, depending on the respective orientation between the knife handle and the blade, the knife must sometimes be oriented in a particular manner in order to fit in a sheath, depending on the handle design.
To store a knife, sheathes have been designed which will allow the knife to be quickly removed from the sheath when needed. Other sheaths have been designed which provide a strap, elastic loop, or the like, for engaging the handle to retain the knife within the sheath. Still further, knives have been designed which secure the handle of the knife to the blade-receiving portion of the sheath through a mechanical means. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,391,574, issued to Housinger on Sep. 30, 1943, discloses a knife handle having a spring arm riveted to the knife blade. The spring arm includes a locking pin which is received in a notch formed in the sheath.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,404,747, issued to Collins, the inventor of the present invention, on Sep. 20, 1983, discloses a knife having a spring-biased button that is receivable in an opening provided in the sheath. The button is depressed when the knife is inserted into the sheath, and remains depressed until reaching the opening, where it then pops into engagement with the opening to lock the knife in the sheath. U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,192, also issued to Collins, on Aug. 15, 1989, discloses a knife having button portions receivable in a hole defined in the sheath. A leaf spring biases one of the button portions into the hole, depending on how the knife is inserted into the sheath. One embodiment of the patent discloses the use of a button and a coil spring, for allowing the knife to be inserted in a locking position into the sheath in only one way. U.S. Pat. No. 4,964,554, again issued to Collins, on Oct. 23, 1990, discloses a knife being retained in a sheath by a bolt and spring, which are slidably contained within a channel within the sheath.
Another knife and sheath design is provided on a knife sold by Dacor (Hi-Tech Hunting Style Knife 7216-00) which includes a button mounted on the sheath for engaging the knife.
In certain situations, it is necessary to have a knife safely secured within a sheath, while at the same time having the knife quickly removable for use. This could be a need for active persons such as rescue workers, backpackers, climbers, and hunters, etc. This is also a particular need of underwater divers. Divers often require the use of their knives in dark, sometime disorienting, environments. Having a simple yet reliable means for quickly releasing the knife from the sheath can be extremely important.
Sheaths are typically provided with a loop portion or open portion for receipt of a belt worn about the waist of the user, or for receipt of a retaining strap. Such an arrangement typically requires for the user to either remove his or her belt in order to place the sheath on the belt, or requires that the strap have a free end available to be inserted through the strap opening.
Sheath-type devices have been disclosed which may be clipped onto an object. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 125,921, issued to Will, et al. on Apr. 23, 1872, discloses a scabbard having a clasp bar and flat spring which pivot about a plate. The clasp bar is moved through action of a screw contacting the plate, the clasp bar being interposed between the back side of the sheath and the head of the screw. U.S. Pat. No. 1,131,669, issued to Bremer, on Mar. 16, 1915, and 4,759,483, issued to Willoughby, on Jul. 26, 1988, disclose other types of sheath attachment means.
While prior sheath attachment configurations are available, they present limitations which often interfere with a low-profile, easy-to-use device.
Although folding knives are often times carried in the pocket of the user, there are occasions when it would be advantageous to be able to clip a folding knife to the user's pocket, belt, strap, boot upper, or the lot. While pocket knives are available which have a clip, such as that of U.S. Pat. No. 4,347,665, issued to Glesser, which discloses a folding knife having a clip, the present invention provides an adjustable clip which can be readily adjusted. This allows the knife to be attached to articles of various thickness and also allows for the gripping pressure of the clip on the article to be varied. Further, the adjustable clip of the present invention provides a low profile securing device less likely to snag or catch on another object, thereby minimizing the risk of inadvertently losing the knife.
It is the principal object of this invention to provide a knife having a blade and handle of integral construction which is comfortable to use.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a knife having a releasable sheath locking structure.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a sheath having means for releasably securing a knife therein.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a sheath which can be readily attached to and removed from a belt or other article.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a knife which can be selectively configured for either left-handed or right-handed use.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a knife which can be simply and economically produced.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a folding knife which can be readily attached to and removed from a belt or other article.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a folding knife having an adjustable clamping device which is of low profile and which can be securely tightened down onto an article.
These and other aspects of the present invention will become further evident upon reference to the following drawings and accompanying specification.
Generally, one preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a knife and sheath combination, the sheath being usable in association with an article. The knife and sheath combination includes a knife having an elongated unitary member defining a blade portion and a handle portion. The handle portion defines a grip receiving opening, and at least one grip member is provided for receipt in the grip receiving opening. At least one flexible elongated tab member movable with respect to the handle portion is provided, the tab member having a first end adjacent the grip member and a second end opposite the first end of the tab member, the second end of the tab member being cantilevered and free to move with respect to the handle portion. A tab projection is connected to the tab member and extends outwardly from the handle portion.
The sheath has a front portion, a back portion opposite the front portion, and first and second side portions opposite one another and each being connected to the front and back portions. The front and back portions and the first and second side portions together define a blade receiving passage. The back portion has a frontal surface adjacent the receiving passage and a rearward surface opposite the frontal surface. The front portion defines a tab projection opening for receiving the tab projection of the tab member of the knife, such that upon the blade portion being inserted into the blade receiving passage, the tab portion projects outwardly from the front portion of the sheath and releasably engages the tab projection opening to retain the knife in the sheath. Accordingly, the knife is removable from the sheath upon depression of the tab projection into the tab projection opening.
Sheath retention means are provided which are connected to the rearward surface of the back portion of the sheath for selectively retaining the sheath to an article.
More specifically, the sheath retention means may include at least one receiver projecting outwardly from the back portion, and a clamping arm having a first end and a second end. The first end of the clamping arm is pivotally connected to the receiver for pivotal movement with respect to the back portion of the sheath, and the second end of the clamping arm includes an engagement portion projecting outwardly from the second end of the clamping arm and towards the rearward surface of the back portion of the sheath.
The first end of the clamping arm includes a threaded bore, which is adjacent the receiver and opposite the second end of said clamping arm. A threaded adjustment member threadingly engages the threaded bore, with the threaded adjustment member having a purchase portion positioned between the first end of the clamping arm and the rearward surface of the sheath's back portion for contacting the rearward surface of the sheath upon selective rotation of the enlarged portion, and for biasing the engagement member towards the rearward surface of the back portion. This causes the engagement member to grip an article for consequently retaining the sheath on the article.
In another embodiment, a clamping device for selectively attaching an elongated handle of a knife to a article is disclosed, which comprises an elongated clamping lever having a first end and a second end opposite the first end. A receiver is provided fixedly attached to the knife handle, and the clamping lever is connected to the receiver adjacent the first end of the clamping lever such that the clamping lever is carried for pivotal movement with respect to the receiver and to the knife handle. The first end of the clamping lever defines a threaded bore therein, and an adjustment member is provided having an elongated threaded portion and an enlarged purchase portion. The enlarged purchase portion has first and second opposing sides and is connected to the elongated threaded portion. The elongated threaded portion is carried in and threadingly engages the threaded bore of the clamping lever such that the enlarged purchase portion is positioned between the first end of the clamping lever and the knife handle. The clamping lever is pivotal between an engagement position, for clamping the knife to the article, and a release position, for allowing removal of the knife from the article.
The enlarged purchase portion is rotatable to a handle contact position for moving the clamping lever to the engagement position, wherein the enlarged purchase portion bears against the knife handle, to a handle clearance position for moving the clamping lever to the release position, wherein the enlarged purchase portion clears the handle of the knife.
A further embodiment includes a receptacle defined in the end of a knife handle for receipt of a rotatable thumbwheel. The thumbwheel threadingly engages with a threaded member fixedly attached to one end of a clamping lever. As the thumbwheel is rotated, the clamping end of the clamping lever can be moved toward or away from the backside of the knife handle for selectively gripping an article. Because of the arcuate movement of the threaded member, the receptacle is configured such that the thumbwheel can be carried therein at a slight angle to accommodate the angle of the threaded member as the clamping lever pivots. A slot is also provided in the handle which communicates with the receptacle such that the threaded member can move unobstructedly in the slot during pivoting of the clamping lever.